Catching Up With Old Friends
by klutzysunshine
Summary: When Abby briefly returns to LA for a visit, she and Buck meet up for lunch. He brings along Eddie and Christopher.


When Abby called and told him she was back in town for a week or so and wanted to meet up with him for lunch, Buck was left reeling. "You want to meet up for lunch?"

"If you have time. Whenever and wherever you want is fine with me," she told him.

Buck looked over at Eddie, who was listening in on the conversation out of curiosity since he had put the phone on speaker. "What do you think?" he asked his boyfriend.

Eddie shrugged. "I think you should go," he whispered.

"Who is that?" Abby inquired, clearly curious herself now.

Buck took a deep breath. "That's my boyfriend, Eddie. Do you mind if I bring him and his son, Christopher?" He didn't want to go alone, even though he was desperate to talk to Abby - despite the way their relationship ended, he still missed her.

Shocked, Abby took a few seconds to respond. "Of course! I'd love to meet the man who has your heart. And he has a son? Bring him along!"

Buck relaxed a bit. "How about Friday at noon?" He suggested a few restaurants and it only took them a few minutes to all agree on a place they liked (Christopher chimed in once, which broke the tension a bit).

After they hung up, Eddie checked on him. "You okay with this? I know the end of your relationship wasn't easy."

Buck nodded. "I want some closure and it'll be nice to see her again. I think you'll love her."

Eddie laughed. "Well, I hope so."

Buck leaned over and kissed him. "Thanks for agreeing to go with me."

He shrugged. "No problem." Eddie didn't mind - meeting Abby would be interesting and he wanted to get to know her before she headed back to Europe.

Three days later, they all met up just before noon at the restaurant. "It's good to see you again," Abby told Buck. Unsure of what to do at first, Buck opened his arms and she embraced him.

"It's good to see you again too, Abby." Then he introduced her to Eddie and Christopher, who took to her right away.

After they sat down and ordered, the conversation truly began. "So, how have you been?" Abby questioned, smiling at the three of them.

Buck sighed. "Been through a lot of shit lately - have you talked to Carla?" At her nod, he plowed on. "It's been rough but I made it through the other side and found Eddie. He joined the firehouse after you left and things progressed from there. We were both pretty stupid and oblivious at first until Hen, Athena, and Maddie - my sister - knocked some sense into us."

"I helped too!" piped up Christopher.

"That you did, buddy." Buck high fived him and grinned at the little boy he loved like his own.

"He's my Buck," Christopher proudly informed Abby.

Abby beamed at him. "Your Buck, huh? That's sweet. How long have you two been together?"

Eddie responded first. "About seven months now."

"Good for you both. You seem happier than I've ever seen you," Abby observed of Buck.

He nodded. "I am pretty happy now. It took me a long time to get to this point - screwed up along the way - but I wouldn't change a thing because it led us here."

Abby smiled. "I'm happy you're happy. And I'm 'living my best life' over in Europe right now - traveling all around. I miss my mother but this is what I needed. I just regret hurting you - should have been honest and upfront with you from the very beginning, Buck."

"Honestly, it hurt for a long time but I've made my peace with our relationship. It was what we both needed at the time. And yes, we have regrets but our lives are exactly where we needed them to be now." Buck smiled at her.

The waitress walked over and dropped off their plates, leaving them alone to eat. Christopher dug into his food first and the adults all laughed at his enthusiasm. "I'm hungry," he defended himself.

"You don't have to explain yourself, buddy," Eddie assured him, ruffling his hair before diving into his own meal.

Abby paused in between bites to continue the conversation. "You love him?"

Buck looked over at Eddie with fondness in his eyes. "Absolutely."

Abby faced Eddie this time. "And what about you?"

"One hundred percent," Eddie assured her once he finished chewing. He grabbed his drink and took a sip.

"And what do you think, Christopher?" Abby asked the little boy.

"They love me and I love them," he answered.

"Good enough for me." They continued to eat, making small talk. After they paid their bills, the four of them got up and talked outside the restaurant for a few minutes. "You better take care of yourself, Evan Buckley," she warned.

Eddie and Buck both laughed. "I have my work cut out for me - he keeps getting hurt."

"Hey!" Buck mock protested. "But yeah, it's true. Disasters keep hitting LA and I end up hurt nearly time. It sucks."

"I'm sure it does. Eddie, take care of our boy, please," Abby told him.

"Always," he acknowledged with a smile.

"Christopher, you make sure that they take care of themselves and don't push themselves too hard, okay?" Abby already adored this little boy and could see why Buck had fallen hard for Eddie.

He nodded his head. "I will, Abby."

"Good. And why don't we keep in touch this time, okay? We can't let our relationship fall by the wayside again." Abby opened her arms and embraced Buck again.

The four of them waved goodbye and then went their separate ways. "I liked her - can see why you did too," Eddie murmured to Buck as they got in the car. "You get the closure you wanted?"

Looking pleased, Buck only nodded in response to his question. "I did. And it feels fantastic." He hoped he and Abby could keep in touch - he liked having her as a friend and still missed her occasionally.

"Good." The two men kissed, ignoring Christopher's protests, and then headed back to Buck's place.

The lunch with Abby had been one of their better ideas. And Buck and Eddie's relationship was strengthened because of it - she soon became one of their close friends and was even invited to the wedding when that finally happened.


End file.
